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Housing Developments
9.56 pm
Mrs. Jacqui Lait (Beckenham) (Con): I present a petition from some of my constituents in support of the private Member’s Bill introduced by my hon. Friend the Member for Tunbridge Wells (Greg Clark), the Protection of Private Gardens (Housing Development) Bill. While the issue of garden grabbing and increased housing density in my outer London constituency is of increasing concern to all my constituents, Mr. Peter Gwizdala and the members of the Ashmere Avenue, Oakway and Scotts Lane action group were so inspired by the Bill that they initiated a petition of support, which has been signed by nearly 200 of their neighbours, on which I congratulate them. I know that the House will take it into consideration when we deliberate on the Bill on 20 October.
Scarborough Hospital
9.57 pm
Mr. John Greenway (Ryedale) (Con): I present a petition on behalf of the residents of Filey in my constituency, on the future of Scarborough hospital.
The petition of the residents of Filey, North Yorkshire
Declares that proposals by the Yorkshire Strategic Health Authority to review service provision at Scarborough Hospital, together with the Department of Health’s instruction to the Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust to repay all debt in the current year is unacceptable and will lead to a significant cut in the acute mental services provided by Scarborough Hospital and the likelihood that patients will have to travel to York and further afield for the treatment they need.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Health to intervene to protect services at Scarborough Hospital and increase funding to levels enjoyed by other Trusts and which more adequately reflect the above average elderly population, the number of visitors treated and the importance of maintaining in such a large rural area the Community Hospitals served by the Trust in Malton, Whitby and Bridlington.
And the petitioners remain etc.
Doncaster Airport (Road Links)
Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn. —[Tony Cunningham.]
9.59 pm
Jeff Ennis (Barnsley, East and Mexborough) (Lab): I am delighted to have the opportunity to speak on the subject of future road links to the Robin Hood Doncaster Sheffield airport. However, before doing so it would be remiss of me not to mention the untimely and tragic death of my friend and former colleague, Kevin Hughes, the former Member of Parliament for Doncaster, North, who sadly passed away over the weekend at the very young age of 53, after a long illness. Kevin played his full part in getting Robin Hood airport off the ground, and he was always proud both to come from Doncaster and to represent it in this place. The whole House will extend its sympathies to his wife, Lynda, and to his family and friends at this difficult time. Doncaster has lost one of its favourite sons.
It being Ten o'clock, the motion for the Adjournment of the House lapsed, without Question put.
Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn. —[Tony Cunningham.]
Jeff Ennis: It is also timely to have a debate this week on Robin Hood airport because it coincides with Farnborough international airshow. RAF Finningley, where the airport now stands, also had a famous airshow, which was popular with many aviation enthusiasts throughout the north and the midlands.
I have the full support in this debate of the other three Doncaster MPs, and I thank the Minister of State, Department for Transport, the hon. Member for South Thanet (Dr. Ladyman), for agreeing to meet us, along with the mayor of Doncaster, Councillor Martin Winter, later this week to discuss this important subject in greater detail.
I draw to the Minister’s attention the considerable support the airport has among Labour MPs from south Yorkshire and north Nottinghamshire, including that of my three Doncaster colleagues: the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster, North (Edward Miliband); the Minister of State, Department of Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton); and the Minister of State, Department of Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint). I am particularly pleased to be joined in the Chamber by my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley, whose constituency includes not only Robin Hood airport but the proposed route of the Finningley and Rossington regeneration route scheme, which we know in Doncaster as the FARRRS project. My hon. Friend has played an important part in the parliamentary campaigns for the airport and for FARRRS, and she represents the villages immediately surrounding the airport, which experience its present traffic.
At
one time, the idea that Robin Hood airport would be a symbol of
Yorkshire pride was met with indifference. However, with support from
Labour Members of Parliament from Doncaster, Barnsley, Rotherham,
Sheffield and the north midlands, we set out to convince the critics
otherwise. Today, few would question that judgment. The significance of
this debate is that it is not about just
a slip road from a motorway to an airport, but about the regeneration of
the east of Doncaster along the M18 corridor. It is about the next
stage in transport integration in Doncaster, and it is about the
attraction of inward investment to one of the most significant business
centres in Yorkshire—Robin Hood airport.
Of all the transport schemes considered by the regional transport board, I argue that the FARRRS scheme is probably the most important in meeting the Government’s overall objectives. It will dramatically cut journey times to the key employment growth centres around the airport. It will interface with the southern end of Doncaster’s ambitious quality bus corridor and park-and-ride scheme, speeding access to Doncaster town centre and Lakeside.
I am delighted now to have been joined by my hon. Friends the Members for Doncaster, North and for Doncaster, Central. I have never felt as much pressure as a parliamentarian as I do now with my three Doncaster colleagues to my right—although I am sure that they will agree that they have always been to the right of me.
I am sure that the scheme will provide certainty about journey times for firms that want to invest in airport-related locations near Robin Hood, including those with vehicles that currently queue on minor roads. A better alternative lies before us. There has been speculation in the press that the current road infrastructure to the airport is inadequate, but that is not true. The road network is adequate and the signage has improved, but we can build on the airport’s critical mass if we improve the infrastructure. That is what FARRRS is all about. FARRRS will not only serve as a road for cars and lorries; it will also be an avenue for public transport, helping the airport to meet its target of bringing 50 per cent. of employees to work by public transport.
In this short debate, I and my colleagues want to highlight to the Minister the need to reach a quick decision on programme entry for the FARRRS scheme. That decision alone will enable Doncaster to recruit a project partner to complete detailed design and commence the statutory processes. The project has partnership funding from Peel Airports, Yorkshire Forward and, we hope, from the Department for Transport. However, the key to unlocking Yorkshire Forward’s contribution is programme entry, which is what the debate is about. Without programme entry, Doncaster will be unable to secure a partner or obtain early funding from the regional development agency and the scheme will be delayed.
Delay is the enemy of good transport and regeneration policy. People always assume that road projects in the UK will take longer than planned, but there is a price to be paid for that in jobs and investment, and we do not believe that delay has to be inevitable. As we have said for years, Robin Hood airport has proved its critics wrong, delivering more than 950 jobs and serving 1 million passengers in just over a year; it serves more than 40 routes, including the first transatlantic routes from a Yorkshire airport. The airport is a Yorkshire success story, but it requires FARRRS to enable it to reach its full potential.
We know that
the scheme has statutory hurdles to overcome, including a possible
public inquiry. For that reason, if Doncaster is to have any chance of
meeting the intended 2009 construction start date, we need programme
entry in weeks, not months, so I hope that
the scheme will run ahead of schedule. Doncaster’s mayor,
Councillor Martin Winter, will try to ensure that Doncaster council
does everything in its power to make swift progress, within the usual
constraints.
I would welcome the Minister’s confirmation that if that regional priority scheme gets programme clearance the Department will not contribute to any delay during the later stages. Will he give us that reassurance in his response? Will he also confirm that the Department’s funding contribution will be brought forward if the scheme makes swifter progress than expected?
We are aware that for some years there have been concerns about capacity limitations on the M18. Doncaster’s intention to dual the White Rose way, which experiences tailbacks to the M18 at peak times, will help to resolve the problem, as will the quality bus corridor initiative. The M18 will require widening between junctions 2 and 3 sooner rather than later to resolve capacity problems that were identified several years ago by the Highways Agency and prioritised in its submissions to the regional transport board. We urge the Department to give a commitment that funding for the widening of the M18 will be agreed in due course.
Mr. Denis MacShane (Rotherham) (Lab): My hon. Friend is making a compelling case. I do not think that I have ever seen three Ministers sitting on the Back Benches in an Adjournment debate, keeping mum and unable to speak, but passionately committed to the case being made. The airport is an extraordinary success story, which needs adequate road transport if it is to be fulfilled. I have raised the issue in written questions and received the usual not terribly helpful reply from the Department—I expect that. But tonight, three weighty Ministers are backing Back Benchers from the region, saying “Do it—connect Robin Hood airport to the rest of the region and make this a success story for the regeneration of the north of England.” I have every confidence that my hon. Friend the Minister, who is a southern MP, will answer yes to every point put by my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley, East and Mexborough (Jeff Ennis).
Jeff Ennis: I feel really humble at this point, having the backing of my right hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Mr. MacShane). That underlines the fact that we are not talking about a Doncaster issue. We are talking not just about a south Yorkshire issue, but about a Yorkshire regional issue and a project that has the capability to be a flagship project not just for Doncaster and south Yorkshire, but for Yorkshire and the Humber in general.
The council is committed to resolving problems associated with the developer-led proposals near junction 5 of the M18 to reduce any adverse impact on the FARRRS scheme. That is the area of the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster, North. The establishment of a link road at junction 5 of the M18 to bring the former Hatfield colliery site forward as a new power park has the support of all my hon. Friends from Doncaster, but it will have to meet the tests of the statutory planning processes. However, as we stand, FARRRS is before us as a major regional transport and regeneration initiative and awaits the ministerial green light to proceed.
To conclude, I invite the Minister to use the experience of Robin Hood airport to look forward. The Government were right to sell the RAF Finningley air base for aviation and the Tory Government were wrong to earmark it for a prison or a massive gravel pit, which is as far as their aspirations for the site went. This Government were right to give approval to the airport after a public inquiry and the critics who said that the airport would simply divert jobs and add no value have been proved wrong. The Doncaster MPs were right in believing that this could be one of the biggest economic wins for our region and the Government have been right to invest in good integrated transport initiatives across Yorkshire. If the Minister recognises the regional importance of FARRRS and gives programme entry to this scheme, he too will be proved right and it will be a decision that he will look back on with pride in future years.
Mr. MacShane: Straight into the Cabinet.
Jeff Ennis: Absolutely. I am sure that the Minister will have heard the old expression, “So near and yet so far.” What we would like the Minister to say tonight is, “So near and yes to FARRRS.”
10.12 pm
The Minister of State, Department for Transport(Dr. Stephen Ladyman): Before I respond to my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley, East and Mexborough (Jeff Ennis), I associate myself with the comments about our former colleague, Kevin Hughes. Kevin was a fine man, an excellent MP and a good friend. I enjoyed many meals and glasses with him in the Members’ Dining Room over the years. I shall miss him and I know that the whole House, as well as the people of Doncaster, will miss him.
I congratulate my hon. Friend on securing the debate and on the passionate way in which he put his case. I am impressed by the bevy of talent that has arrayed itself around him on the Benches: my right hon. Friend the Member for Rotherham (Mr. MacShane), the Minister of State, Department of Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton), the Parliamentary Secretary, Cabinet Office, my hon. Friend the Member for Doncaster, North (Edward Miliband) and the Minister of State, Department of Health, my hon. Friend the Member for Don Valley (Caroline Flint), all of whom have campaigned vigorously and hard for this scheme. They have all approached me in different guises and at different times to make sure that I was aware of their support for it. I am meeting many of them later this week to discuss the plans further.
Good local transport is fundamental to building thriving and prosperous communities. That is why, since 2000-01, we have more than doubled the funding to local authorities for transport in every region to more than £1.6 billion in 2006-07. Funding for local transport in the Yorkshire and Humber region has risen from £75 million to £160 million this year—a90 per cent. increase in real terms. South Yorkshire alone will benefit from more than £37 million for small-scale schemes and highway maintenance this year.
We need to
ensure that our funding for new transport infrastructure is focused on
the schemes that will most effectively address the needs of each
region.
To achieve that, the Government have for the first time given regions a
say in decision making about transport schemes that affect them at a
regional and local level. In Yorkshire and Humber—and in other
regions—the regional development agency, the regional assembly,
local authority partners and other key interestshave been able
to consider together their transport programmes against the
region’s high-level objectives and to develop a prioritised and
affordable programme that offers the best overall contribution to
meeting those objectives. They have worked together to identify which
of the many proposals before them should go forward, and in what
timescale. Without exception, they have done a good job of
that.
The advice from the Yorkshire and Humber region, which included the Finningley and Rossington regeneration route scheme—as my hon. Friend says, that is known as FARRRS—was received at the end of January. We announced our decisions on 6 July. The region has confirmed that it regards FARRRS as an important priority and recommended that we provided £72 million from the indicative regional funding allocation starting in 2009-10.
In our response to the region, and following its advice, we included FARRRS on the indicative list of schemes that are expected to start construction in the period beginning in 2009, subject, of course, to securing all necessary statutory powers and compliance with the Department’s scheme approval requirements. That is consistent with Doncaster council’s timetable for starting work on FARRRS around 2009 or 2010.
As my hon. Friend the Member for Barnsley, East and Mexborough said, we have not at this stage approved FARRRS for entry to our programme of major transport schemes. That is because there are several aspects of Doncaster’s business case that the Department is still considering with Doncaster. However, I can confirm that we fully recognise the objectives that FARRRS aims to achieve: to support the growth of Robin Hood airport; to provide access to prospective regeneration sites, such as at Rossington and Finningley; and to improve accessibility to the strategic road network for the communities to the south-east of Doncaster. There are two key issues that the Department is discussing with Doncaster that need to be carefully considered before we reach a final decision on programme entry for FARRRS.
The first issue
relates to the growth of Robin Hood airport itself. As my hon. Friend
said, one of the principal objectives of FARRRS is to provide an
improved route to Robin Hood airport to support its further growth. The
airport already holds a planning permission that will allow its
expansion so that it can handle 2.8 million passengers a year and
50,000 tonnes of freight. I note the progress that has already been
made by the airport and congratulate the owners on achieving their
millionth passenger in June this year. Clearly, however, air travel is
a competitive market and Robin Hood airport will need to compete
effectively with other airports to meet its long-term growth
aspirations. That means that we need to examine carefully a range of
airport traffic forecasts when assessing the need for surface access
infrastructure to cope with increased demand. We need to be satisfied
that the future growth of the airport will be sufficient to justify
major investment in improved surface access
infrastructure. We also need to be satisfied that the airport operator
will be able to make an appropriate financial contribution to the cost
of the FARRRS scheme, which is also dependent on the airport’s
commercial success.
The second point is that we need to be satisfied that building FARRRS is not going to cause serious congestion and traffic problems on other sections of the road network that serves Doncaster and the surrounding area. It would be in no one’s interests to build a scheme that resulted in increased congestion on other key routes and made accessibility both to the airport and other areas more difficult. An important factor is the extent to which FARRRS would generate new traffic by facilitating new development at locations such as Rossington and Finningley. The effect on the wider road network of the traffic generated by FARRRS also needs to be considered alongside the traffic that might be generated by other planned and prospective developments in the Doncaster area.
I understand that the Highways Agency has indicated that the developments that could be opened up by FARRRS, together with other prospective developments that would feed traffic on to the M18, may well cause unacceptable traffic queuing and congestion on the motorway. The agency’s view is that, to accommodate that traffic, significant improvements may be needed to junction 3 of the M18 and to the M18 itself between junctions 2 and 3, as well as to White Rose way, which runs north from junction 3 of the M18 into Doncaster, and, perhaps, to the A1(M) in the longer term.
Doncaster council has plans to make some small-scale improvements to White Rose way in the shorter term, but it is possible that full dualling of that route would be needed if the full regeneration benefits of FARRRS are to be realised. That could cost in the order of £25 million and was not included in the region’s advice for funding in the period up to 2015. Similarly, the region has made no provision so far to fund improvements to either the M18 or the A1(M) in the period up to 2015.
We therefore need to look carefully at how far the construction of FARRRS would necessitate the construction of other transport infrastructure improvements. If such improvements are needed, we will also need to consider whether funding could be provided for them on an appropriate time scale within the region’s indicative funding allocation. The region itself flagged up that issue in its advice to us, and it is something on which we may need to seek its further advice.
Jeff Ennis: The Minister is making some excellent points of which, obviously, we as local MPs are aware. Does he agree that, if the local council is committed to dualling White Rose way and is willing to put its hand in its pocket to fund that, it is incumbent on the Government to show the council good faith and also to put their hand in their pocket for the future funding of FARRRS?
Dr.
Ladyman: My hon. Friend is trying to tempt me, and I
understand why, but those are the very discussions that we need to have
with the council. We need to find out whether it is prepared to put its
hand in its pocket to dual White Rose way. If it is, we can build that
into our calculations about FARRRS, as
White Rose way would not affect its development. The quicker we can have
such discussions, the quicker we can come to the sorts of conclusions
for which my hon. Friend is
hoping.
The regeneration issues raised by FARRRS also need to be considered in the context of the spatial strategy for the region and the local area. The area to the south-east of Doncaster was designated as a strategic economic zone in the objective 1 European regeneration programme. Doncaster has made significant progress as a result of that investment and we all want that to continue in a sustainable way. Now that the objective 1 programme is drawing to a close, there needs to be a debate about how best to continue the regeneration effort. That is being taken forward in the Yorkshire and Humber region through the revisions to the regional spatial strategy and, in Doncaster, by the production of a local development framework to replace the unitary development plan. It is important that we take account of the outcome of the consultations relating to the location of future development in the approval of new infrastructure such as FARRRS.
My hon. Friend asked about the possibility of bringing forward funding for FARRRS if the scheme can be progressed more quickly than Doncaster is currently proposing. It would be for the region to consider whether that could be accommodated in the indicative regional funding allocation and whether any scheme should be rescheduled to facilitate the release of funding. However, I have to warn him that I doubt whether the scheme could complete all necessary statutory procedures and be ready to start construction before 2009 or 2010. The funding programme for the region that we have announced makes money available for FARRRS in the period 2009-10 to 2015-16. That comfortably aligns with Doncaster’s programme for a start on site around 2009 or 2010.
In closing this debate, I emphasise that we are working to improve transport in South Yorkshire as a whole to ensure that people are better able to access jobs and essential services. I fully appreciate the importance that my hon. Friend and other Members who are with him tonight attach to the scheme in supporting the growth of Robin Hood airport and contributing to the regeneration of South Yorkshire. Although I cannot say today when we will be ready to announce a decision on programme entry for FARRRS, I can assure the House that we are working hard to resolve all the outstanding issues with Doncaster council as quickly as possible. I promise my hon. Friend that I personally will guarantee that no hold-ups are caused by the Department for Transport or the Highways Agency. We will make sure that decisions are made as expeditiously as possible to achieve the conclusion that he wants.
I emphasise, too, the fact that the local transport plan system has provided more certainty of funding for local authorities so that they can tackle local issues to improve road maintenance and traffic management, enhance road safety and make buses more accessible and integrated with other transport modes. While those are small-scale investments in relation to FARRRS, I hope that Doncaster council and the other South Yorkshire authorities can use that funding to help improve access to Robin Hood airport by sustainable means. That will help, too, to meet the region’s aim of improving public transport access to its region airports. In conclusion, I look forward to meeting my hon. Friends later this week and I promise to give them my full co-operation in trying to move this forward as expeditiously as the region wishes.
Adjourned accordingly at twenty-five minutes pastTen o’clock.
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